Indian hotelier in Britain charged with murder

An Indian hotel owner has been charged with murder in Britain after his customer allergic to peanuts died while eating a curry made of peanuts. The owner of a chain of award-winning Indian restaurants in the UK has been charged with manslaughter of a 38-year-old customer who died of a severe allergic reaction after eating a curry that contained peanuts.

Paul Wilson was killed by anaphylactic shock after eating the curry from a takeaway which is believed to have contained peanuts. On Wednesday, restaurant owner Mohammed Khalique Zaman, 52, was charged with manslaughter by gross negligence over the tragedy. This is the first time that a restaurant owner has faced such a charge.

The new EU legislation compels restaurants to declare if their food contained allergens, such as nuts, milk, celery, gluten and soya. Around 10 people die annually in the UK from reactions to food. Restaurants that use ground peanuts instead of ground almonds because they are cheaper, and do not disclose the ingredient have become easy targets.

In 2011, The Spice Lounge in Norfolk was ordered to pay 6,000 pounds when a diner needed emergency treatment after eating dairy despite warning of allergies.